


GUARDIAN

by changjaelly



Category: BTOB (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe Changsub, Angst, CEO Changsub, Explicit Language, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Marriage, Slice of Life, Swearing, mature - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-18
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-13 14:29:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29527830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/changjaelly/pseuds/changjaelly
Summary: A woman who took a wrong step by marrying her childhood friend, immediately doubting her life choices in which lead her down to the path of suffer and pain. Not until she meets someone who could take her back to the path of flowery happiness.
Relationships: Lee Changsub/Iris Rose
Kudos: 6





	1. Anonymous

**Author's Note:**

> Changsub will make an appearance on the next chapter, don't worry! ^^

"Good evening, Miss Rose"

Theo greeted Iris as soon as he sees her walking out of the hotel entrance with such elegance, even though she is only wearing her daily office uniform attire. The sound of her black heels clicks on the polished marble floor makes Theo's heart skip a beat. It is the effect that she has on him after months months of dating, still.

Theo is leaning on the passenger door of his black Honda Civic with his arms crossed and immediately smiles when Iris stands in front of him, showing her pearly white teeth. Her eyes twinkle brightly in love and adoration as her boyfriend gives a peck on her cheek.

"How was your day?", Theo asks.

"It was fine. The number of guests checked-in today was a lot more than yesterday but I managed it well."

Theo opened the door for Iris and she steps in carefully before giving a simple 'thank you' to Theo. Moments after, Theo gets into the driver's seat, putting on his seat belt before starting up the engine and drives off of the hotel's entrance hallway.

"What about you? How was work?", Iris turns to Theo. He flashes her a brief smile and diverts his eyes back on the road, not wanting to actually crash the car due to Iris's captivating beauty.

"Work was hectic, but you're always on my mind so that's what kept me going."

His response makes Iris cringe, but she appreciates him thinking of her as his strength to get through his day. Theo gives her strength as much as she gives him. She is thankful for that.

After a few moments of silence, Theo puts his free hand on Iris's thigh and gently rubs it with his thumb, while the other hand firmly on the steering wheel. The simple gesture makes Iris's heart flutter. She really loves this small yet meaningful touches from Theo, it means a lot to her. Iris puts her hand on top of his and they just sit in a comfortable silence ride back home.

The traffic is packed with cars, people trying to get home from work during this rush hour. The sound of horns from vehicle all around them could be heard from inside the car, adding stress to the people who are behind the steering wheel due to the incompetence of others in driving. After dealing with guests, Iris wants nothing more than wanting to throw herself on her soft bed and roll herself up in a comforter in her air-conditioned room. A 10 hour sleep sounds festive to her right now.

As her eyes are drooping close, Theo beams from the driver's seat, "Do you want to eat dinner?"

"No, thank you. I had a late lunch so I'm still full. I'll eat some oats and bread with a cup of hot tea later if I'm hungry"

"Are you sure?", Theo's voice is full of concern.

"Yes, don't worry", she gives him a reassuring smile.

After awhile, they finally enter Iris's neighbourhood area. Less than 10 minutes and Iris will be home, reuniting with her beloved bed. It's few minutes past dusk, the mixture of orange and yellow rays from the sun can be seen from behind the clouds, ready to slip down the horizon taking turns with the moon to shine in the dark night sky. As someone who works at the front desk of a hotel, she can't really see the sky from inside the building that often. Unlike those who are working or staying at the top floors, they can simple look at the sky through the windows. Iris has always love pretty skies ever since she was a child, be it sunset or sunrise. Iris will never misses her chance to take a photo.

In fact, 80% of her gallery is full of sunset and sunrise photos, rather than photos of herself, Theo, friends and family combined.

Seeing the orange hues, mixing with tinges of light pink, Iris lowers the window and takes out her phone from her handbag. From the side mirror reflection, Iris notices a white car following from behind. She looks in the mirror for a moment and shrugs her shoulder off before she starts to take pictures of the pretty canvas above. Theo slows down the car to allow Iris take pictures, knowing very well that she really loves the sky.

Looking up at the sky brings something to her soul that Iris can't quite understand herself. The sky somehow brings inner peace and happiness to her every single time her eyes fall upon the giant canvas in the sky. All of her worries evaporate along with her life hindrance into the thin air, that is how much the sky brings her tranquility.

As Theo slows down, Iris expects the white car from bheind would overtake them but it also slows down, matching the 10KM/H speed of Theo's Honda Civic. Iris turns to Theo but it seems like he doesn't notice her worries, as well as their pursuer, so Iris puts her phone away before turning her whole body to the back so that she can get a better look at the car.

"Theo? I think the car behind is following us"

Theo looks in the rear view mirror first before looking back.

"Really? How long has it been following us?", Theo asks. He winds up Iris's window and steps on the gas to create as much distance as possible from the anonymous car.

"I don't know. I'm scared",

Hearing Iris's shaky voice, Theo speeds up without caring if they are in a neighbourhood area or not. The car behind catches up with their speed and that just makes both of them worry ten times fold. Many bad scenarios playing through Iris's mind as if she was flipping through a TV channel. The thought of a stalker following her back home sends chill down her spine, especially knowing the fact that she lives alone.

"There's a small alley between houses about 500 metres from here. Let's go there and hide", Iris tells her boyfriend. Without another word, he steps on the gas paddle and speeds up to the alley that Iris said. Theo's eyes keeps on diverting from the road in front of them to the rear view mirror and back to the road again. Heart pumps faster, adrenaline rushing through the body, blood flowing through the veins faster than usual, realising the fact that they are being followed by some stalker.

In his mind, Theo scolds himself for not being alert throughout the whole journey back home from the hotel. Who knows how long has the stalker been following them?

Fortunately, the gap between them and their pursuer grows bigger until they can barely see the car in view. As they are about to reach the said alley, Theo slows down before turning on the intersection. He pulls the handbrake and takes off the seat belt.

"Hopefully we lost them", Theo says.

Iris doesn't say anything because she is feeling nervous thinking about their anonymous pursuer. Various bad thoughts and images playing through her mind like a movie being fast forwarded, making Iris feeling more scared than she already is. Instantly, she looks through the side mirror which reflects the main neighbourhood road behind them to check whether the white car has passed by or not. At that time, Iris doesn't even dare to blink her eyes as she watches in anticipation, worried that if she blinks she might miss the car.

"What if the person turns to another corner?", Iris asks.

"Pretty sure not. Just-", Theo doesn't get to finish his sentence when suddenly a white car drives by the alley that they are currently hiding. The air is filled with silence and tension as the two of them hold their breath, too silent that even silence has its own sound.

Iris turns to her boyfriend with worried eyes, "The car didn't notice us, right?". Her hand subconsciously grabs Theo's arm across the centre console, an act out of reflex.

"Hey," he says while cupping Iris's cheeks, "I'm sure it was nothing. I will never let anyone hurt you, I promise. There's nothing to worry about as long as I'm by your side, okay?"

They hold eye contact for a few seconds, Iris trying to find some kind of reassurance and certainty in her boyfriend's eyes. She could feel that Theo is telling the truth, and she never felt so reassured during all these months they started dating. She knows in her heart that this man will do anything to protect her, even taking several bullets for her. She _trusts_ him.

"Okay", Iris replies in a whisper, still managing a soft smile for Theo.

Out of nowhere, Theo's phone rings, breaking the tensed atmosphere for God knows how long and he instantly fishes out the device out of his pocket before checking the caller ID on the screen. Theo stares at his phone for awhile and hits the red end call button, putting it away back in his pocket. That act of behaviour perks up Iris's curiosity because Theo would always answers his phone except the time when he's in a meeting.

"Why didn't you answer it?", Iris asks.

"Nothing, it was an unknown number"

Iris furrows her perfectly threaded brows together, not believing his answer 100%, "But you always answer your phone, no matter who they are. It could be one of your clients or even an emergency".

Her answer causes Theo to gulp his own saliva and as far as she knows, she swears that she could almost feel Theo panicking a bit. Almost.

"It was nobody, darling. Just... a scammer. Been calling me all day today", Theo retorts back while avoiding eye contact at the same time.

"Then why didn't you just block the number if it has been bothering you all day?", by now Iris is fully turned to him in her seat with her arms crossed. Suddenly all thoughts regarding about the possible stalker problem vanish from her head. 

Theo is about to come up for an answer when his phone rings again. Iris eyes his front jeans pocket where he keeps his phone, her demeanour unusually calm for situations like this, while on the other hand Theo is struggling to keep his phone off.

"Are you hiding something from me?", Iris asks another question straightforwardly.

"What? No, why would I? I'm not hiding anything, Iris. Really", he stammers.

"Really?", she raises one of her brows.

"I swear. There's nothing to worry about. I promise"

Silence fills the air once again for a moment, eyes looking into each other's souls. One searching for the truth and another hoping that she believes the made up truth. Trust is the most important thing in Iris's life and it is the first thing she gains when meeting new people. Though it is not easy for her to trust people, when the right person who truly deserve her trust comes into her life, she knows she will grant them. She just knows it.

"Okay", Iris turns her body to the front. "I trust you".

Theo lets out a relieved sigh, happy that this is settled without any arguments. He can't afford getting into a fight right now, especially after what just happened few minutes ago.

Theo checks for the time on his wrist watch before voices out, "Let's get you home".

With that, Theo puts his car on reverse to exit the alley between two houses, not forgetting to check for the anonymous pursuer one last time. When he is certain that the coast is clear, he takes off. Iris's home isn't that far from where they were hiding earlier so it takes them about three minutes to reach her house and before they know it, Theo's car pulls up at the front gate of Iris's terrace.

Iris unfastens her seat belt when she notices Theo is checking the time on his watch again but she doesn't say a word. Theo opens the door before pulling up the breaks and walks over to Iris's side. He wants to open the door for her but Iris beats him to it and exits his car. In Theo's thought, she doesn't seem angry but she is silent than usual.

"Hey, you trust me, right?", Theo dares to ask the question, hands reaching out for hers,

"Of course I do"

"Good, because-", he checks his watch again, "I love you so much. I can't wait to officially see your parents and ask for your hand in marriage"

Iris's face falls slightly but she hides her expression by grabbing his hands tightly before stepping closer. Both of their abdomens are touching each other, Iris could feel his breath against her face.

"Me too. I can't wait to share my life with you", her brown eyes pours into his and the eye contact makes Theo's heart skips a beat, an effect that Iris has on him.

Looking at his wrist watch again, he says "Well, you should go in. Have some rest. I'll call you when I get home"

"Okay. You keep looking at your watch though", Iris points out, "As if you're rushing for something. Do you have a another girlfriend or wife waiting for you at home?"

Theo knows she is only joking but it still doesn't hide the fact that it makes him nervous. His heart is literally pumping faster yet again.

"No, there's a football game starting in 30 minutes so I don't want to miss it", Theo lets out a nervous laughter hoping that it is not that obvious.

"I'm just messing with you"

"I know, darling. I only have you in my life and no one else"

Iris gives him a smile, even though she feels odd when her boyfriend said those words. She shrugs it off and goes inside, not before kissing him on the cheek. Theo waits until she is really inside and locks the door before he gets inside his care and drives home.

For the umpteenth time, his phone rings again and he looks at the caller ID before finally answers it.

"Yes, darling? Yeah, I'm on my way home now. Okay. Alright, I will. I love you"

After ending the call, Theo drives out of the neighbourhood and heads home. Little did he know that the white car following behind them earlier is hiding at the same alley they were in before.

[LATER]

Theo's car enters his porch and the automatic gate closes behind him. He cuts off the engine before getting out and locks his car. He takes out his house keys from his other pocket and unlocks the front door, not until someone from inside opens the door for him and he stands there motionless. Shoes are already taken off from his feet and he is greeted by a woman wearing a silk robe with fluffy slippers to cover her feet. The woman smiles at him and he smiles back before stepping inside.

"Welcome home, honey", the woman says.

"Hey", Theo gives him a quick peck on the lips before hugging her slip figure tightly.

"You're home late today. Did something happen at work? You even ignored my calls several times", Theo's wife, Angelina, asks while closing the door. She then walks up to Theo, grabs his hand and lead the both of them to the sofa in the living room.

"No, no. Nothing like that. Just caught up in the traffic, that's all. It's the reason why I had to ignore your calls, baby"

Theo takes a seat with Angelina sitting next to him while she massages his arms and shoulders tenderly. Soft groans and moans boom throughout the spacious living room.

"Oh, that feels so good, baby", Theo compliments his wife's massaging skills. After a hard day at work, this is what Theo needs; a good massage from his wife.

"Why don't you go upstairs, shower, and freshen up while I prepare something for you to eat?", Angelina suggests.

"I prefer you to join me though", Theo's hand goes up and down his wife's thighs, making her a little bit squimish, but in a good way. Seeing her reaction, Theo shoots her a devilish smile.

"No, we have all the time in the world to do that. I'm hungry while waiting for you. Hurry up, go shower"

With a loud sigh, Theo admits that his request got turned down but it is something that he doesn't hold against his wife. No hard feelings at all, and he is actually quite hungry too. Theo gets up and goes up his shared bedroom upstairs. Not forgetting to plant a brief kiss on Angelina's forehead, as his way of telling her that it is okay, which makes Angelina smile at the gesture. She always loves when her husband does that because she could feel all the love and devotion in that one simple kiss to her forehead. It makes her feel like she's the most luckiest woman in the world to have such a loving husband in her life, knowing that she doesn't have to share him with anyone. He is hers and she is his.

Little did she know that she's somewhat 'sharing' her husband's love with someone else. Someone who is too naive to see the real Theo.

Angelina smiles to herself before goes to the kitchen to heat up dinner that she bought after work earlier evening. She takes out the two sets of spaghetti meatballs, Theo's favourite, from the paper bag and puts it in the microwave to re-heat. While waiting, she takes out two white ceramic plates from the cabinet on top of her and also two wine glasses. She checks the timer on the microwave.

_00:36._

Moving on, she opens the other cabinet and takes out a bottle of wine and pouring it into the glass. With that, she goes to the dinner table with the drinks and puts it down gently, alone with two sets of fork and spoon to use. The microwave timer goes off with a loud "TING", indicating that the food is ready. Angelina takes out the spaghetti and sets it out nicely on the plate, as if she made the dish herself. Once she is done, she brings the plates of spaghetti to the dinner table and smiles proudly.

Angelina is not a person who knows a lot about cooking and she admits that she can't cook that well, but she is grateful to her husband for accepting one of her flaws of not being a good cook as a wife.

Later, Angelina decides to wait for Theo in their bedroom just so they could come down and eat together. Walking up the stairs, she calls out for her husband but getting no response. Knocking on the door, she peeks her head in to scan the room. However, the door to the bathroom is still closed and she could hear the shower being cut off so she plops down on their queen sized bed, her silk robe flared out a bit by her sides.

As she waits for her husband to come out of the bathroom, her eyes land on Theo's phone that is sitting beside her. Angelina takes it and presses the home button, simply to see his lockscreen which she loves it so much. The screen shows a picture of her and Theo during their wedding day two years ago. It is a candid shot taken by one of their hired professional photographers. Both of them are looking into each other's eyes while smiling happily.

It's her favourite picture and because of that, Theo puts it up as his lockscreen.

Angelina smiles to herself, feeling grateful and content at the same time. As she's about to put the phone down, a text comes through the notification bar. She holds the phone higher to take a better look at the text and her mouth falls slightly ajar as she reads the sender's name and the text. Another text message comes through so she slides right to open the message. As a wife, Theo's phone has Angelina's thumbprint ID saved so she uses that as an advantage to look through the chat of her husband and the sender.

_**IRIS ROSE:** Hey babe_

**_IRIS ROSE:_** _Have you reached home yet?_

**_IRIS ROSE:_ ** _I'm all freshen up now_

The longer she stares at the text message, the hotter her blood boil inside her body. Her heart rate and breath start to accelerate, her vision suddenly turns blurry due to the tears swelling up in her eyes threatening to fall, and all she could see is red. The bathroom door swings open revealing a starstrucked Theo at the sight of his wife holding his phone. At that time, Theo knows that his secret is busted upon his own fault of leaving his phone unattended. Usually he would just bring it to the bathroom with him, but not tonight.

Tonight God wants to show Angelina the truth that he has been hiding for nearly a year now. No matter how long you hide the truth, it will soon be revealed sooner or later. All the colours on Theo's face drains out as he turns pale, seeing his wife angrily stands up from the bed with tears running down her cheeks.

He doesn't dare to move an inch.

"Would you care to explain to me who the hell is Iris Rose?!", Angelina's voice bounces off the walls of their bedroom. She holds up the pone in his face but Theo's eyes are glued on the floors.

"FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, THEO. WHO IS SHE?!"

"I-I don't know. Lately there has been this crazy woman at my office who's so obsessed with me. she keeps on bothering me, messaging and calling me non-stop", Theo tries to make an excuse.

"Then why the fuck didn't you tell me about this? Huh? why didn't you make a police report?", By this time, Angelina breathes heavily while Theo's mind is trying to think of another lie.

"I got it all under control, I promise. She's already got suspended from work. I already-", Theo is cut off when Angelina suddenly takes his right hand and forcefully shoves his phone in his palm.

"Do not talk to me. I don't want to hear any of your bullshit excuses anymore"

In a blink of an eye, Angelina takes her handbag from the hanging rack by the mirror before storming out of the room. She ignored every calls from her husband and immediately goes for the front door. Theo comes down running from the stairs only in sweatpants but none of that matters as his wife gets in the car.

"Angie, baby, where are you going?"

"Staying the fuck away from a cheating piece of shit husband like you"

And with that, she drives off. This is too much for her to take in, she can't stand to be in the same room with Theo, let alone to be under the same roof. She's too disgusted to look at his husband in the face, knowing that he cheated on her. The guy who she thought that she had him all by herself. Angelina just don't have the energy to deal with this problem right now, whatever happens to Theo in the house, happens. She doesn't care.

Theo just stands there not knowing what to do because his secret is now out. At the end, he decides to let Angelina cools herself down and then only he will try to talk to her. As long as she doesn't know where Iris lives or works, that's fine.

Theo walks back into the house with a heavy heart. He wants to call Angelina but it is most like she turns off her phone because the robot voice of a computerised woman keeps telling him that the number he calls is not in service. Talking to Iris right now is the only thing he can do to distract himself.

As much as Theo hates this, all he has to do now is wait for tomorrow.


	2. Strangers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iris meets with two strangers at work today. One being a CEO of a company that soon will open a new branch in the city, and another one whom she least expects it.

The next day, Iris walks through the hotel entrance to start her daily work as a front desk of a 5-star well known hotel. Her appearance looks the same everyday, hotel uniform with black heels, but that never stops her from looking elegant and classy.

Her hair is in the usual neat bun, simple yet strong make up on her face to look appealing while greeting hotel guests. Iris knows that almost every guy who works in this hotel has their eyes on her but she plays innocent to that fact. Iris has her heart on one man and one man only, and that is Theo. Nobody else.

Upon reaching the room where all the hotel staffs put away their personal belongings in their assigned lockers, Iris puts away her handbag in her locker before putting on her name tag on her shirt and tidy herself up to start her work.

"Good morning, Iris", one of the staffs beams at her. She works at the front desk with Iris too.

"Morning, Anna. Ready to face another day of checking-in rich families, chaebols and CEOs to our hotel?", Iris jokes.

"And possibly find my life partner while doing so? Hell yeah!", Anna pumps her fist in the air excitedly. Iris laughs at her colleague's energetic antics. At least she is starting her day with a smile.

"I'll go first so meet you outside, okay?", closing her locker, Iris walks out to her work station while Anna replies her with a simple 'okay' and continues applying lipstick on her lips.

It is Friday so the number of guests will be doubles since it is the start of a weekend. Iris is always prepared to face this day every week but it sometimes drains her energy dealing with obnoxious guests who always being rude to hotel staffs, thinking that they are mighty just because they have the wealth.

"It's okay,", Iris says to herself, "It's all part of the job and you're just trying to make a living"

And with that, Iris starts her day by greeting guests, checking them in, makes reservation through the phone, answering guests's calls from their hotel rooms and also, checking them out form the hotel to those who are going back.

Doing her job diligently is a trait that Iris has, always making sure the job is done well and perfect. She hates being lazy at work, even if the job is not part of her forte. The job is given to a person with such honour and trust, so to Iris, she must do the work sincerely.

The next things she knows, It is already noon so Iris will have her lunch break for one hour. As she is about to change her break shift with another staff on duty, one man walks up to the desk with such charisma in his demeanour. With his hair pushed up, the man dresses clad in a formal attire of plain white shirt under dark navy blue vest with a matching set of blazer and dress pants of the same colour.

To complete the look, he wears a black tie around his neck nicely with an expensive Rolex on his right wrist. Not to forget a pair of black leather office shoes on his feet. Iris mentally slaps herself for observing someone in such detail, in which something she never does. Yes, she is observant but not _this_ observant.

It is just that this man attracts her with his charms and he doesn't even spoken a word yet. With another mental slap in her mind, Iris composes herself while flashes her smile to the guest.

"Welcome to Four Seasons Hotel, Sir. How can I help you on this fine afternoon?"

The man looks up from his phone and accidentally makes eye contact with Iris in an instant. Iris notices that his mouth falls slightly ajar upon looking up from his phone but no words being said. Not knowing what to do, Iris waves her hand left and right in front of his face to bring him back from the trance.

"Sir? Is everything okay?", she asks.

Blinking his eyes, the man clears his throat to collect himself together. He smiles nervously at Iris for no reason and puts down his small sized luggage on the floor and his briefcase that he has been holding on the desk. For the second time, he clears his throat again before speaking up.

"Yes, I apologise for staring in such manner. I made a reservation under the name of Lee Changsub two days ago", the man, Changsub, says before handing Iris a photocopy of his reservation email.

Iris smiles again, as a courtesy of welcoming a guest. She takes the piece of paper and works her magic on filling up the details needed as her fingers start typing as fast as she could. Even so, Iris is always careful not to make any mistake with typos or any errors while she help her guest to check-in.

"You reserved a double deluxe room for three nights, correct?", Iris asks for confirmation, looking up from the computer screen to look at him.

Iris expects the man would be looking at his phone because that is what most rich guests do, not paying attention while the staffs do the check-in process, which as a result the guest would be treating rudely to the staff by simply dismissing them or even belittle them for "not being efficient enough".

But not this man, this man with the name of Lee Changsub.

Turns out, he has been keeping his eyes on her the whole time she's typing away on her keyboard. Looking up only to meet with his eyes makes Iris taken back a bit but she does her best not to show it. Something about this man makes Iris nervous.

_'Be professional, Iris Rose!'_ , her unconscious mind speaks out to her as a reminder.

"Yes, that would be correct", Changsub smiles at her. Something Changsub rarely does ever since since he lost his wife over a year ago. Let alone smiling at a complete stranger.

Also, Iris feels like she might be wrong but she swears that she saw her new guest eyes her name tag on her left chest.

A few more typing here and confirmation of details there, Iris is finally done with checking-in her last guest before her lunch break. She takes out a keycard from the drawer beside her, puts inside a paper sleeve and hands it to Changsub.

"There you go. Your room will be on the seventh floor. You will have access to our hotel guest Wi-Fi for as long as your stay here and you can find the password at the back of the keycard. I hope you will enjoy your stay here, Mr. Lee. Just press zero on the phone if you need anything", Iris says, not forgetting to put one hand on her chest as a gesture of welcome.

"Thank you. You have a nice day, Ms. Rose", Changsub winks at Iris before flashing a drop dead charming smile.

"You too, Mr. Lee", she replies with a shaky breath.

And with that, Changsub takes both of his luggage and briefcase and heads for the lift. Such powerful aura and charm radiating from Changsub as he walks off, causing Iris to have her eyes glued on the broad back of the man. Iris waits for Changsub is gone from her sight until she lets out a breath, which she doesn't realise how long she has been holding it in for.

"What in the world just happened, 10 minutes ago? Oh my God", shaking her head to get rid the image of her newly welcomed _handsome yet charming_ guest, Iris switches shifts with her other colleague to take a break.

Things like these rarely happen to Iris. Of course, she had met a handful of handsome and rich men throughout her career in this hotel as a front desk, ranging from different ages. But none of the encounters are like this, she knows for a fact that this one is different. None of the guests before Lee Changsub had the power, ability and charm to make her feel this way. Though Iris herself can't understand why.

Iris walks back to the staff room to punch her card before her lunch break and opens her locker to take her phone and purse. Last night Theo promised to take her out to lunch today so she unlocks her phone to call her boyfriend. However, all of hopes are being smashed into pieces when she sees a message from a Theo.

_**THEO:** _ _Iris, I'm sorry but I have to cancel our lunch late today._

_**THEO:** _ _I can't tell you why but I'll make it up to you. Promise._

The truth is, Iris really doesn't mind if Theo had to cancel plans with her. She is not the forcing and demanding type that would childishly sulk if her boyfriend has something more important matter to attend to. Iris understands his nature of work and his situation. But one thing Iris hates the most is that how Theo cancelled their lunch date at the very last minute. As far as she remembers, Theo told her last night on their long conversation on the phone that he took the day off today so that means no work.

Feeling frustrated, she slams her locker shut. Luckily there is no one around to witness her little tantrum or else it would be somewhat embarrassing. Iris leaves the room with a huff and straight away heads to the hotel's restaurant located at the lobby. As she is passing by the front desk, Anna calls out to her.

"Iris Rose! I'm going to get lunch at the cafe next block with Mike and Linda. Wanna join?"

Iris shakes her head and replies with "No, thanks. I don't have the energy to walk around. I'll just get something from the hotel's restaurant", then turns around and walks away. Not bothering to wait for Anna's response.

Upon arriving, Iris straight away takes a seat at a table for two people by the large window. She simply orders a side dish of french fries and ice water, not really feeling hungry anymore after her plans got cancelled so suddenly. Theo's message makes Iris lost her appetite, compared to one hour ago when she was so hungry and was really looking forward to see her boyfriend. She always does.

The waiter goes away with her order and there she sits, looking out the window with her right hand propped against her chin. Since the location of this hotel is at the heart of Incheon city, the building is literally surrounded by other office buildings, condominiums, service apartments and many more. Thousands of people walking pass by on the sidewalk to wherever their desired destination is. Amongst those thousands of people, some are office workers, families, couples, students, teens and all other types of people living in this city.

Iris's mind is somewhere else thinking about random things to the point that she doesn't even notice when the extra chair in front of her is being pulled back by someone and instantly occupies the empty seat. The person clears his throat which brings her mind back to reality upon hearing the voice from the guy sitting in front of her uninvited. Iris is about to tell the guy to leave her alone when she realises who it is.

"Penny for your thoughts, Ms. Rose?", he says with a smile, making his eyes turn into a macaroon shape. He leans forward and rests both hands on the table with his fingers intertwined with each other.

"Oh, it's you, Mr. Lee. Sorry, I'm just distracted. How long have you been here?", Iris sits up straight and pays full attention to Changsub.

"I came here to have lunch and was supposed to meet my client here but my secretary told me that the meeting got rescheduled to tomorrow. I was about to go up to my room when I saw you sitting down here"

Iris looks down on her lap, wondering how long has it been since Changsub noticed her walking into the restaurant. A strand of her hair falls by the side of head and she tucks it behind her ear. She gives him a small smile, still bumped about Theo.

"Are you on your lunch break?", Changsub asks, trying to keep the conversation going.

"Yes, I am. What about you? You're returning to your room without having lunch first? I heard their beef lasagna is one of the highly recommended dishes by the chef, though", Iris jokes.

Changsub lets out a chuckle upon hearing the indirect promotion of the hotel that she is currently working at. Iris smiles when she hears Changsub's laugh.

As a reply, Changsub says "Seeing a pretty lady like you eating alone, I think it wouldn't be a gentleman of me to just leave you here, right?"

"Are you asking me to join you for lunch, Mr. Lee?", Iris leans forward after the question leaves her lips. That simple act makes Changsub leans back in nervousness, not used to being this close with someone from the opposite sex after the death of his wife.

"If you'd like to, Ms. Rose. i don't want to make you feel uncomfortable though. i respect that if you want to eat alone"

Changsub seems a little agitated but for some odd reasons, Iris feels comfortable being in Changsub's presence, a complete stranger to her. Iris puts a finger on her chin as if she is thinking deeply and smiles at him again.

"I don't see why not. And don't worry. you don't make me feel uncomfortable at all. Need to distract my mind from certain things anyway", Iris says the last part nonchalantly.

It is either Changsub did not hear Iris's last part of her statement or he simply chooses to ignore for Iris's sake, not wanting to push her to tell him about her problems if she does not want to. As someone whom he just met, Changsub feels like he does not have the right to know and he does not want to invade Iris's privacy. She will tell if she wants to. Plus they only met for less than 30 minutes.

Changsub calls the waiter and orders his lunch, which is suggested by Iris. Seeing how much she keeps on saying it is the most delicious dish of the restaurant, Changsub decides to get it. Not awhile after that, Iris's fries came when the waiter just finished taking Changsub's order. When Changsub sees what Iris is having for lunch, he immediately orders another beef lasagna for her from the same waiter. Of course, Iris rejects it but Changsub insists on it so she does not want to debate any further.

"I'm really not hungry though. A small bowl of fries is enough for me, really", Iris says while taking a sip from her drink.

The moment she says that, a low rumbling of a hungry stomach suddenly plays through the air, loud enough for both of them to hear. Iris curses her own body for giving it away.

'Well, at least my appetite is back', Iris says in her mind.

Changsub raises an eyebrow at the sound. Both of them are not saying anything and suddenly they just laugh. At that moment, Iris forgets her angered feelings towards Theo. All thoughts of him instantly vanish when she spends her time laughing with this charming man. laughing with Changsub makes her forget that she has a boyfriend for awhile. None of that matters at the moment. She needs something to get her mind off of him, Iris does not have the energy to think about what kind of excuses that she expects to hear from her boyfriend later.

"Yeah, I guess I actually am hungry", she says.

Changsub just shakes his head left and right while looking down, lips still wearing a smile.

Iris looks away from him and let her eyes wander around the large restaurant area fell of tables and chairs for the guests. The restaurant itself is not that crowded but the number of guests is quite handful, to say the least. Coincidentally, she sees a man with a red hoodie covers his head currently watching her. Iris ignores and returns her attention to Changsub.

"So, what are you here for? By the way you told me that you were waiting for a client, I'm assuming you're not here for a weekend getaway", Iris asks while taking another sip of her now quarter full glass.

"I'm here for a business trip for four days. I don't live here actually. My company is going to open up a new branch here so I have to make myself present for business matters"

The waiter comes with Changsub's drink, saying that their food will be ready in a few minutes. Changsub nods in respect and thanks the waiter for the notice.

"Your company? So you're the boss, huh?", Iris says after the waiter leaves. Her eyes keep looking at the guy sitting few metres from them back and forth. Iris tries her best to ignore and turns to Changsub.

"I consider myself as one of the board of directors", Changsub says humbly.

Iris laughs at his response. From her observation, Changsub looks somewhere between 28 to 30 years old. Somewhat a little bit too young to be a CEO of a company but she believes everyone has their own part of fortune in life. It is just a matter of time when will the fortune come.

She smiles to herself, which catches Changsub's attention. A strange feeling sparks within him, a feeling that he cannot grasp the whole meaning of it.

"Why are you smiling?", Changsub asks. Their eyes meet again.

"Nothing. I'm just amazed at how someone as young as you can be the CEO. I'm sure you're somewhat in your early 30s, not more than 31 years old, from what I can see", Iris says, eyes roaming through Changsub facial features.

"Is that so?", Changsub asks smugly. "Well, what do you see?"

Iris takes a few moment to herself to observe the man seated in front of her. Her eyes scan from the head to the torso and then to his two arms resting on the arm rest of the chair. Without her noticing, Changsub's eyes are doing the same thing as hers, observing her features that stands out the most. To Changsub, he likes how her eyes are perfectly almond shaped, with the corners turned up a little making her eyes resembles a cat. Long, thick lashes come as a bonus.

"I can see that you're the man who has the money which of course, the money you've worked hard for, I believe, considering the expensive brands of your attire and accessories. Even your briefcase has your initials on it. I saw it when I was checking you in earlier", Iris smiles again.

"Well, Ms. Rose. Aren't you the observant type?"

"I have my charms", she shrugs her shoulders proudly.

Then the water arrives with their food. The waiter serves and puts their dish nicely and leaves them with a "enjoy your lunch". When the waiter turns to leave, Iris's eyes naturally follows him but then her eyes divert itself to the man in the red hoodie. He's still looking at their table. No matter how hard she tries, she seems to cannot recognise the man.

Feeling uncomfortable knowing that she is being watched, Iris shifts in her seat. That action makes Changsub looks at her with concern, afraid that he might cause Iris to feel uneasy.

"Are you okay?", Changsub asks, hands holding the cutlery but eyes locked to Iris.

"Yeah, I am", she smiles, just to convince Changsub that she is.

Changsub hesitates at her answer but he does not want to probe. They both dig in their food in silence, only making small talks here and there. From across the large area, the red hoodie guy still observes Iris from afar but Iris pretends that he is not there.

"If you don't mind me asking, why did you come here alone? You looked a little bit upset when you entered the restaurant", Changsub asks as soon as he is done eating. He wipes the corner of his mouth to clean any leftovers.

"I was upset that my boyfriend cancelled our lunch date last minute. I mean, he texted me six minutes before my lunch break starts, which made me feel upset", Iris takes her last bite of her beef lasagna after answering Changsub's question.

"Maybe he has an urgent matter at work to do?", Changsub's response sounds like a question rather than a statement.

Iris shakes her head, "No. He took the day off work today so I doubt it would be work related. I just don't like cancelling plans at the very last minute. The least he could do is, I don't know, let me know an hour in advance perhaps? It's not like he has a wife at home or anything, you know?"

Iris lets out a deep sigh. Then she realised that she literally just went full out blabbering to a stranger that she just met. Embarrassment starts to cloud herself, making her cheeks and ears turn red.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to pour my frustrations out on you. You probably don't care. I apologise for my behaviour", Iris says sheepishly.

"I asked because I care, Ms. Rose", Changsub says while leaning back with arms crossed on his torso. His Rolex peeks through his shirt sleeve a little bit.

Iris looks up to him and realises that Changsub has been listening to every word she says. A very gentle,an behaviour to do for a stranger.

"Thank you. I'll just have to deal with him later"

After a few more chats, it is time for Iris to get back on her work. Changsub calls out the waiter to bring the bills for their food. At first, Iris wants to pay for her own food but Changsub beats her to it when he hands the waiter his credit card without bothering to check for the total amount first.

"You know, Mr. Lee, I can pay for myself though", Iris says after she puts away her purse.

"It's the least I could do. Besides, I was the one who asked you to have lunch with me, no? So it makes sense for me to be the one who pays", Changsub says with a smile.

Only then Iris realises that Changsub's eyes turn into a crescent shape whenever he smiles, not only looking like a macaroon. Iris finds it attractive for his eye-smile.

"Thank you. I appreciate it that you paid on my behalf too, and for listening to my blabbering earlier"

"The pleasure is mine, Ms. Rose", Changsub winks.

After the waiter returns with the receipt, both of them stand up and ready to leave the restaurant. As she is about to start walking, Iris notices the unknown man is still looking at her. She stands there looking back at him, still trying to take a good look of the man.

"Are you coming, Ms. Rose?", Changsub calls out in front of her.

Iris turns to Changsub and then back to the man. The man stands up as well and leaves the restaurant using another exit that leads straight away to the outside of the building.

"Yeah, coming"

The two of them walk towards the lounge area of the hotel lobby. Few guests wandering around and Iris notices that the amount of people in the lobby is starting to increase, which reminds her that she needs to get back to work as soon as possible.

"Well, I should get back to work. Thank you again for the lunch, Mr. Lee. Please enjoy your stay here", Iris bows to show gratitude to her now new acquaintance.

"Not a problem. I hope you'll get to resolve your issue with your boyfriend soon", Changsub says before unbuttoning his navy blue blazer. He puts his hand in his pockets immediately after.

Iris swings back and forth on her heels, not sure what to say next. Deep down in her heart, she admits that she really enjoyed conversing with this man that is Lee Changsub. The vibe and the personality he has make Iris feel comfortable around him. In reality, she does not have many friends and it would be nice to have this man as someone who she hopefully can call a friend.

"I hope to see you around for as long as I stay here, Ms. Rose. I'll let you get back to work now", Changsub says.

"Thank you, Mr. Lee. I wish prosperity and success for your new office branch", Iris gives him a genuine smile.

With that, they part ways to get on for the rest of the day. Iris returns to the staff room to resume her work and Changsub heads to the lift to get back to his room where can resume his own work.

Spending her lunch break with someone whim she just met while checking-in a hotel guest is something that makes Iris forgets how upset she is towards Theo. Iris somehow feels grateful that her mind is distracted because today's guests are unexpectedly many in numbers. Seeing that next week is a public holiday, many families come to have a short vacation with their loved ones, hence the increase number of guests.

After hours of working, the next thing she knows that it is the end of her shift. Finally she gets to go home and rest, maybe give Theo a call too. Throughout the whole afternoon, Theo does not reply to a single text that Iris sent. Even not returning any of her calls too. Iris is annoyed with the sudden ghosting of Theo. Looks like she has to go back by herself, in which Theo would be the one picks her up after work on a daily basis. Iris does not mind going back by herself though. It gives her time to think about her boyfriend.

After taking off her name tag and takes out her handbag, she closes her locker before signing out on the staff's daily log book. Iris bids good bye to her fellow co-workers and wishers them a great weekend ahead to those who are having the two days off.

Exiting the staff room, Iris walks throughout the busy lobby. Her eyes scan the whole area for the sign of Changsub but he is nowhere to be found. Deep dow, she wants to let him know that she will have the Saturday off and will return to work on Sunday.

_'For what reason? It's not like he cares'_ , her subconscious adds.

She shakes her head, not believing herself that such thoughts could cross her mind. He is just another hotel guest anyway, no one important. In the future, he might be a regular guest here seeing that his company will open a new branch here in Incheon. CEO stuff.

Sighing, Iris continues walking. As she is about to reach the entrance, she feels a hand lightly taps her left shoulder. She turns around and her eyes meet with a woman who has a slightly taller figure than her. Her brain works to make a facial recognition of this woman but Iris is positive that she does not know this woman stands before her.

"Yes, May I help you?", Iris asks with curiosity laces in her voice.

"Are you Iris Rose?", the unknown woman asks her back.

"Yes I am", a slight uneasy feeling starts to engulf her.

"Can we talk? Please? Somewhere we can sit?", the woman voices out her concern.

"And may I know who are you?", Iris returns her question back to the woman.

This woman could be a hotel guest or someone that a few of her friends know, but one thing Iris does not expect is the answer that falls out of the woman's mouth. Time seems to stop when the woman answers her question and at that very moment, Iris wishes that she was deaf just so that she does not need to hear the woman's identity reveal.

"I'm Theo's wife, Angelina"


	3. Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The truth hurts and Iris tries her best to let go of the person that she loves dearly. Somehow, the universe seems to keep meeting her with a certain someone from lunch.

"I'm Theo's wife, Angelina"

Do you ever feel like the whole world stops moving when you hear and see something that is beyond your expectation? As if time freezes itself and everything else in this world id frozen except you. At the same time, you feel like there is an invisible burden being lowered down on your shoulders, making you struggle to keep your head above the water just so you can breathe. That is exactly how Iris is feeling the moment this woman in front of her, Angelina, reveals her identity.

At that time, Iris feels everything all at once. She wants to scream, cry, breakdown on the floor, run away, disappear, refusing to admit her entire existence, and even consider drowning herself underwater. Her mind is jumbled up, refraining her from thinking rationally as a civilised person.

None of the two women mutter a word, only exchange glances from each other. Iris hates to admit to herself but she is sure she heard the woman correctly, that she is really Theo's wife. Not some random woman coming at her. The same Theo that Iris is in a relationship with, currently.

Iris musters up any bits of courage left in her soul before speaking up.

"Let's go somewhere a little less crowded", she tries her best to not stutter a word.

Iris turns around and leads the way back to a secluded lounge area of the hotel's lobby, away from the main front desk where there are less people. Iris takes a seat on one of the sofa and Angelina sits across her, only to be separated by a small round marbled coffee table between them. The moment Angelina is seated, Iris does not dare to lift her head up to look at the woman, let alone to make eye contact.

Briefly, Iris could see that Angelina is someone who has wealth from the way she dresses herself with expensive brands clothing line and accessories. Not to mention she is beautiful and elegant in Iris's eyes. Iris diverts her attention to Angelina's fourth finger on her left hand, a silver band is wrapped around her finger designed with a small diamond at the centre of the ring. Her heart beats faster than usual at the sight of the wedding ring, shining brightly on Angelina's finger. It makes Iris wonder why would Theo cheated on his wife when his wife is already has the whole package.

"So you're Theo's girlfriend, huh?", Angelina speaks up. Her voice makes Iris feels intimidated.

"Ma'am, I can explain. Please-", Iris tries to talk but Angelina is quick to cut her off.

"Explain what?! That you stole my husband from me? What kind of a woman are you, Iris?"

Angelina's voice is sharp and becomes louder with every question that comes out from her mouth. With her head hangs low, Iris could only pray that none of the guests or staffs are aware of Angelina's sudden increase in volume. The last thing she wants is unwanted attention.

"It's not like that, ma'am. I swear I didn't know he was married. Please", Iris begs, though she does not know what for.

"Liar. How could you destroy another woman's life and happiness by going out with her husband? Isn't there any single men left out there in this world that you could possibly choose?"

By this time, Iris is crying. Her heart is shattered at the fact that she is a marriage wrecker. She is the reason for the pain she has caused upon this perfect woman seated across her. Guilt weighs heavily on her shoulders and she blames herself so much for the trouble she has caused.

"I really didn't know, ma'am. Please, trust me. I wouldn't even let myself near him if I knew he was married. Please believe me", Iris begs while struggles to let the words out in between her sobs. The pain is unbearable.

"How long have you been together with him?", Angelina asks, her tone is strong and clear.

"Nearly a year, 10 months to be exact", Iris sniffles before answering right away.

Angelina lets out a scoff, not believing her husband cheated on her one year after their marriage. She begins to question herself internally what went wrong with her as a wife. What made Theo chooses Iris over her? What is she lacking? What does Iris have that she does not?"

Iris looks away from her hands rested on her lap, not having enough courage to look at the woman whom she has caused pain upon. Her eyes are everywhere, scanning the lobby where the number of guests does not decrease since earlier afternoon.

Suddenly her eyes land on a familiar figure from the lunch she had with Changsub few hours ago. There he stands, by the giant decorated table in the middle of the lobby with his hands in the pockets of his red hoodie. Iris squints her eyes to focus better but she is sure that she does not recognise the man.

The anonymous man stares in Iris's direction, making Iris to tear her vision from the man. Feeling scared, Iris turns to the front to face Angelina, who is currently has her arms crossed over her torso.

"I'll leave him, if that's what you want", Iris suddenly says with determination, "I'll break things off with him and never see him again. I'm willing to back off. He isn't even mine in the first place and I'm not even going to fight for him or anything like that"

Angelina is surprised, not expecting for Iris to be the one who steps back. In her head, she is imagining Iris would lash out on her, saying that she would still want to be with Theo no matter what. Just like the movies and dramas shown on the TV. Nevertheless, Angelina maintains her composure, still.

"I appreciate that, Iris, because I really can't afford losing him. I'd rather get a divorce than having to share his love with someone else", Angelina's face softens as she says that.

Iris's heart breaks again, if that is even possible. Iris loves Theo a lot but he belongs to someone else. It would be best if she walks away from this broken relationship that is built based on lies, also from Theo's life and find another man. Theo belongs to Angelina.

_'You deserve better'_ , Iris tells herself.

"He belongs with you, I have no rights over him. I'll walk away and never look back. I promise you this", Iris says with tears running down her cheeks, ruining her make up. Black strain of mascara cascading down her cheeks, puffy eyes and red, runny nose are the least of her worries right now.

As Iris is about to get up and leave, an all too familiar figure suddenly appears from the lobby. Both women are speechless, not because that they are surprised, but one because she is fuming mad and another one because she is at the verge of screaming on top of her lungs in the person's face right there and then.

"Iris", Theo starts to speak.

How did Angelina and Theo know where to find her at this exact time, Iris does not know and does not want to know. It is the least of her concerns, though she somehow has a feeling that the couple had an intense fight before coming to her workplace. Without giving him a response, Iris shoves her way through to take her leave, intentionally bumping into Theo's shoulder in the process. Iris has absolutely no energy to deal with Theo and she decides that she does not even want to.

"Iris, wait. We need to talk"

Theo is quick to grab Iris's elbow to stop her from leaving, causing her to be pulled backwards. The audacity of this man to even touch her in front of his own wife is unbelievable, too surreal that Iris feels pressured and embarrassed both at the same time. Upon being pulled back by Theo due to his action, Iris is face-to-face with the man she once trusted the most in the world. Their eyes meet each other, as if the tension is strong enough to break a glass and but the overwhelming feeling of betrayal clouds her vision. No, she refuses to hear whatever bullshit this man is about to say.

Iris pulls her arm away from Theo's grip, few strands of her hair fall by the side of her face in the process. From the corner of her eye, she can see Angelina is standing there watching the scene unfolds before her. One might think that she is enjoying whatever drama is playing at the moment and cannot be bothered to defend her husband. Maybe she thinks this is what he deserves after all.

"We have nothing to talk. Our relationship ends here and don't you dare talk to me ever again", Iris strongly says through gritted teeth. Her voice laced with venom.

"Please, let's talk this out-"

"There is nothing to talk about!", Iris cuts him off, increasing her volume slightly, "Don't you understand? You have a wife for God's sake! It's her that you should talk to, not me. How dare you even think about marrying me when you already have a wife? Who do you take me for and most importantly, who do you take your wife for?"

Cheating is one thing, but hearing the words coming out from Iris's mouth that Theo plans on marrying Iris is another thing. With a burning rage, Angelina stomps her feet in her black heels over to where Iris and Theo are standing before grabbing her husband's shoulder to face her direction and slaps him across the face. Too hard for the people around them to pay attention what is happening. At this point, none of the women care about the wondering eyes looking at them.

"You what?! Marrying her? What the fuck is wrong with you?!", Angelina's voice increases with every question she shoots.

Iris has had enough already, her head is starting to pound and her mind is exhausted to deal with him right now. Within a short amount of time, she has decided that she has to let go of this man for good. He is not even hers from the beginning. She cannot possibly do more damage to someone else's marriage, no woman in the world deserves to be treated this way. In fact, the thought of building a marriage based on someone's misery and pain is just too low for her. Iris has standards of her own and this is not it.

Taking a deep breath as if she is mentally latching onto a lifeline thrown for her at the most critical situation, she turns toward the couple before letting out the words that she desperately needs to say.

"Theo, please, let's just end this. This is not right and you know that. Go back to wife, talk things out with her, apologise to her. You not only disrespected me, but you also disrespected your wife. Please, I'm begging you. Do not ever call me, see me or even try to talk to me. I'm done, we are done. Go back to your wife where you belong", Iris says softly, tears streaming down her face ruining her make up even more. Her nose is red and runny, eyes bloodshot with tears, puffing up the more she cries. Her chest tightens with every second ticking by, making her gasping for air to continue breathing.

Theo knows he is at loss and there is no point arguing back. Deep down, he knows that Iris is right and he shamelessly admits that he made a big mistake. He feels pathetic.

Without another word, Iris turns and walks away from the couple, leaving for them to figure out by themselves on how to repair their marriage. Iris feels sorry to Angelina for causing trouble between her and her husband but she cannot find the will to apologise to her. It is a coward move, she know that, but somehow Iris trusts whatever deity is watching over her right now to convey her feelings to the woman about how sorry she is. Iris knows that Angelina could feel it.

Iris pushes herself through the crowd in the lobby, bumping into random people and nearly tripping over someone's feet to take herself away from the man that she once loved. Her vision is blurry with tears and honestly, she cannot even see properly to where she is going but she is aware where the entrance is located. She does not give a damn who she bumps into and not even bother to apologise for it. Her mind is too preoccupied with what just happened to care about her surroundings. Even the thought of the anonymous guy in the red hoodie is being pushed back deep from her conscious mind.

However, as if the universe is either looking out for her or pretending not to hear her crying heart, Iris accidentally bumps into a certain someone that she has totally forgotten about their first time meeting earlier afternoon. A dull pain shoots through her skull, making her losing a little bit of her balance but she manage to regain her composure before she could trip over her own step.

Due to the height differences, Iris's head collides with a solid chest that causes the person to huffs out a breath with a slight groan upon the sudden accident. Iris looks up, clearly not expecting to really and literally bump into someone in the chest. Her hazel coloured orbs meet with the person's dark brown ones for a second and it does not take long for Iris to look through her files of the people she recognises in her brain to know who it is.

Iris takes a few steps back and composes herself as much as she can despite what happened few minutes ago. She clears her throat before tucking the loose strand of hair behind her ear that keeps falling out. Gripping her hand bag rather tighter than before for some courage, she speaks up.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Lee. It was my mistake for not looking where I was going. Are you okay?"

Changsub takes a moment to answer, scanning her face to see any discomfort from the collision. He notices how messed up she looks now, than few hours ago when they had their lunch together. "It's fine, you don't have to apologise. The question is, are _you_ okay?"

"Y-yes, I am", Iris stutters due to her attempt to not cry in front of her guest.

"You don't look okay though. What happened?"

Changsub's eyes stays on Iris while her eyes look everywhere but Changsub. The thing is, she is too embarrassed to see Changsub like this, all messed up and pathetic. She wishes that the time could stop so that she can escape from Changsub, escape from this hotel, escape from the problems and escape from this world. Things were going just fine up until 15 minutes ago where everything comes tumbling down upon her. Yesterday she was happy but today she is miserable.

Mustering whatever courage she had left in her, Iris looks at Changsub to convince him that there is nothing to worry about. Only then she realises that Changsub is looking rather casual than formal from their first meeting that very afternoon, with a simple sweatpants, dry fit t-shirt and a sports shoe. It does not take a genius to figure out that Changsub just came back from a jog, from the way he dresses and how sweaty he looks.

"Nothing happened. I'm fine, don't worry. Just rushing to get back home", she tells him whatever white lies that could make him convinced that she is okay.

Changsub is about to say something else when Iris quickly intervene, "Well, I gotta go now. My Uber is nearly here and I don't want to get caught up in traffic. Tomorrow is my day off so I'll see you on Sunday, Mr. Lee. Have a nice evening", Iris spurs out lies that could possibly get her out of the situation as soon as possible. Except for the part where she told him that she will not be at work tomorrow.

Without waiting for Changsub's response, Iris walks away rather hurriedly to the grand entrance of the hotel, leaving Changsub dumbfounded. He turns around to watch Iris leave until he cannot see her anymore, still confused as to what just happened. He knows for a fact that she is not okay, seeing her puffy tear streaked face and red rimmed eyes obviously due to crying. Shaking his head and wiping the excessive beads of sweat from his forehead, Changsub makes his way to the lift to return to his room where he can freshen himself up after a one hour jog at the park nearby. Though he is dying to know what caused the beautiful Iris Rose cried.

On the other hand, once Iris turns around the hotel's corner on the sidewalk, she slows her walking pace down. Taking her time to fully absorb the undeniable fact that she dated someone's husband all this while. The truth is hidden from her so well that she did not even suspect a thing from Theo throughout their 10 months relationship. Her mind cannot even think straight as she continues walking down the pavement, blending with several other people surrounding her. The fastest way to get home is by an Uber since she does not own a car but the thought of having to exert extra energy to take her phone out to request for a ride back home sounds mentally and emotionally exhausting so she walks towards the nearest bus stop to commute her way back. It is not much but Iris hopes and begs to God that He keeps her safe while she drowns in her feelings, lost in her mind, trying to make it home.

_Please, spare me some chance to breathe._

* * *

After closing the door behind him and taking off his sports shoe at the entry way of his room, Changsub plops down on the small sofa by the window to let himself cool down for awhile before taking a shower. 

Taking his phone out from his pocket, Changsub pulls down the notification panel at the top and finds that he has three work related emails, two messages from his secretary, a missed call from his mother, and few reminders about his meeting with his client that will take place tomorrow morning. Quick to reply to his emails, Changsub passes his notice about the dreadful meeting to his trusted secretary before putting his phone on charge and leave it on the nightstand, mentally reminding himself to call his mother back some time later.

Being a CEO of a company can be fun when you are really into business stuff, but it is also tiring to ensure the success as well as the growth of your company. The meetings with clients are his least favourite thing to do, dreading for it to be over while trying his best to pay attention to his clients and co-workers because of his fairly short attention span. However, four years of handling the company has definitely increases Changsub's attention span up to a par, since he he has to be professional and strict with his co-workers. Sure it is stressful, but doing business is what he loves and he will do whatever it takes to keep the company float above water.

Looking out through the window, the sun begins its way slipping down the horizon creating bright orange and yellow streaks painted across the sky. Fluffy clouds surrounding the sunset makes it more mesmerising despite some of it being hidden by tall skyscrapers of the man-made concrete jungle. Changsub finds the beautiful scene calming, lost in his own train of thoughts while enjoying the view from the seventh floor of the building.

As his mind takes him wandering to random places somewhere in his brain, it downs to him that his minds brings him back to Iris. Changsub did not expect to bump into Iris Rose and he definitely did not expect to bump into a _crying_ Iris Rose. The stark difference of character from the one he met when he had lunch with her in the afternoon and the one he bumped into moments ago makes Changsub turn into a curious cat. One can know that she is not okay, though she claims that she is, but this is not the first time in his life that he encounters with a woman. He knows that it is lowkey weird to wonder about a stranger crying and lowkey dying to know the reason behind it, but Changsub himself cannot understand why his mind keeps on thinking about Iris.

The way she tries so hard to avoid eye contact, her body language, her physical appearance, and her whole demeanour literally screams that she is far from okay. Whatever it is, Changsub hopes that everything is well for her, that her pain will be temporary and the cloud of sadness hanging above her head will vanish and turn into a shining rainbow instead. As a person, Changsub believes that every problem has its own solution and he makes a short prayer for Iris's well-being.

_'What are you even doing, man? She has a boyfriend!'_ , his subconscious reminds him.

Of course. How could even forget that? She has a boyfriend and he definitely does not have any right to wonder about her. What good does that bring to him? None. Shaking the image of a beautiful Iris Rose from his mind, Changsub lets out a heavy sigh. Not forgetting to mentally slap himself hard in the face for having such thoughts. The reason he came here is for work and work only, no time for sidetracking in other stuff.

Changsub takes one last look at the sunset before pulling the thick curtains to cover the window in front of him before making his way to the bathroom to freshen up. He needs to get back on his work as soon as possible, preparing what is needed to prepare for tomorrow's meeting. After all, Changsub is a very busy man. No time for petty, unimportant matter.

Or so he thought. For now.


End file.
